--- title: "Marketing Research 101: Six Common Mistakes in Survey Questionnaire Design" description: "Marketing Research 101: Six Commons Mistakes in Survey Questionnaire Design" image: https://info-profiles.kantar.com/hubfs/blog-files/6-mistakes.jpg --- - - - - [mailto:info@gmi-mr.com](mailto:info@gmi-mr.com) [![Kantar-Logo-Small-Use-Black](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/hs-fs/hubfs/logos/Kantar-Logo-Small-Use-Black.png?width=119&name=Kantar-Logo-Small-Use-Black.png)](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com) - [Home](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/) - [Sample Audiences](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/sample-audiences/) - [Quality Suite](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/sample-audiences/quality-suite/) - [Panel Profiling](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/sample-audiences/panel-profiling/) - [B2B Panels](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/sample-audiences/business-to-business-panels/) - [Custom Panels](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/sample-audiences/custom-panels/) - [Millennial Panel](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/sample-audiences/vice-voices/) - [Research Solutions](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/) - [Quick Turn Surveys](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/lightspeed-quick-turn-surveys/) - [Survey Design](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/survey-design/) - [Tracking Research Design](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/tracking-research-design/) - [Integrated Technology Solutions](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/integrated-technology-solutions/) - [Data Processing](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/data-processing/) - [Ad Tracker](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/ad-tracker/) - [Survey Programming](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/ad-tracker/) - [Sample Only Services](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/research-solutions/sample-only-services/) - [Data Services](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/data-services) - [Data Appends](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/data-services/data-appends/) - [Mobile](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/mobile/) - [Mobile Solutions](http://http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/mobile/) - [Resource Center](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/resource-center/) - [Events](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/resource-center/events/) - [Demos](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/resource-center/demos/) - [Case Studies](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/resource-center/case-studies/) - [Blog](https://blog.lightspeedresearch.com/) - [General Inquiries](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/contact-us/general-inquiries/) - [About Us](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/about-us/) - [Leadership Team](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/about-us/leadership-team/) - [Press Releases](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/about-us/news-press-releases/) - [Why Lightspeed](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/about-us/why-lightspeed/) - [Careers](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/about-us/careers/) - [Regions](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/about-us/regions/) - [Awards](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/awards/) - [Contact Us](http://www.lightspeedresearch.com/contact-us/) # Kantar's Profiles Blog # Marketing Research 101: Six Common Mistakes in Survey Questionnaire Design Posted by [Tara Wildt](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/author/tara-wildt) on Sep 21, 2015 ![](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/hubfs/TaraW_Color.jpg) - [Tweet](https://twitter.com/share) Online surveys have become the cornerstone of the market research industry. ![6-mistakes](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/hs-fs/hubfs/blog-files/6-mistakes.jpg?width=318&name=6-mistakes.jpg)They quickly and easily allow businesses to gather consumer data, which they can use to: enrich products, alter marketing campaigns, and tailor messaging. Unfortunately, modern technology, which has improved the ease with which companies can generate surveys and analyze results, has also spawned an era where an increasing number of surveys are poorly formulated, limiting responses or skewing data to misrepresent customer intentions. By applying a few basic tenants of survey design, we easily increase engagement and improve data accuracy and overall quality.   **[![Click here for 6 tips on writing survey questions for the modern respondent ](https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/641505/767a6918-1cdc-46da-b986-63d265c4743a.png)](https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/641505/767a6918-1cdc-46da-b986-63d265c4743a)** **Questions that Affect the Answer** 1. Leading Questions: Questions should be phrased in a way that suggests all responses are equally viable 2. Loaded Questions: Write questions that do not inherently encourage the participant to be less-than-straightforward with the response **Questions that Result in Unclear Data** 3. Double-Barreled Questions: Questions that ask two things and offer only one opportunity to answer do not provide usable data 4. Questions with Absolutes: Unless the subject is clear-cut (i.e., ‘Are you a man?’), the question should provide enough choices to represent participant response  **Questions that Confuse** 5. Jargon: Unless the participant pool is very specific, such a ward of doctors at a local hospital, questions should avoid using abbreviations, industry-specific language, or slang. Using clear, common language insures that 100% of the participant pool has an equal understanding of the content 6. Offering Too Many Options: Potential responses to online survey questions should be limited to five or six. Offering more options can be confusing to the participant, clutters the survey, and may negatively affect survey completion While there is much more to online survey design than adhering to these six principles, avoiding the most common errors of question formulation will greatly increase a survey’s return rate, accuracy, and relevancy.    Topics: [Survey Design](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/survey-design) ### Subscribe to Email Updates ### Recent Posts ### Posts by Topic - [Marketing Research (46)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/marketing-research) - [Market Research (28)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/market-research) - [Marketing Research Data (28)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/marketing-research-data) - [modern surveys (27)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/modern-surveys) - [Mobile (26)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/mobile) - [Data Driven Marketing (21)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/data-driven-marketing) - [Market Research Trends (18)](https://info-profiles.kantar.com/topic/market-research-trends) - 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